Chapter 21 Eight Old Revolutionaries
Through this meeting, Hu Jiao arranged the party and government work in the township and could go to the villages to conduct a survey with peace of mind.
According to Hu Jiao's summary of various reports from previous years and the basic information provided by the Party and Government Office, the busiest task in Tieshu Township every year is the distribution of relief grain funds.
This is also the work in which the contradiction between cadres and the masses is more prominent. The township has no other way to show its superiority, so it can only attract the attention of the people of the township by issuing relief.
No one dared to shortchange, block or misappropriate Lixiacun's share.
The quotas and quantities of relief for other villages are mostly decided by the township.
The village must strive for more, and the township must extract some funds. Even if it is just nominal expenses, we must find a way to extract it.
Hu Jiao knew the real purpose of the funds that were blocked under various pretexts.
He had no intention of removing these ugly things.
Since the levies and other taxes of the villages have been in arrears for a long time, it is reasonable for the township to make up for it by providing relief from the cards.
Therefore, the conflicts between the village and the township are concentrated on relief work.
Solving the relief work has basically solved most of Tieshu’s problems.
Therefore, Hu Jiao’s first stop was Lixia Village, to visit eight old Red Army soldiers who are still alive.
Chen Xiaohou's father, whose full name was Chen Dahong, originally had no real name, only a nickname, Mao Gou.
He was only fifteen years old when he followed General Chen Hu.
Because he spoke loudly like thunder, he was renamed Chen Dapao and served as the general's orderly. Later, he was promoted to the rank of battalion commander. Commander Xu, who was the political commissar of the army at the time, helped him change his name to Chen Dahong, meaning "the vast land and rivers are all red."
Chen Dahong is already 85 years old this year, but his voice is still very loud when he chats, making other people's foreheads buzz.
Sit upright, with your hands on your knees, sitting like a bell.
When talking about those passionate years, the old man's dim eyes would flash with light from time to time, making people feel a chill.
This is the temperament forged from fighting on the battlefield and amidst the mountains of corpses and seas of blood; it is not something that is done intentionally.
He said that if it weren't for his third uncle (General Chen Hu) taking care of him and letting him continue to serve, he might have died decades ago, so he has been living a miserable life for the past few decades.
Not only him, but the other seven people were the same.
He also said that the country is doing well now, and the people across the country have food to eat and clothes to wear. The original ideals of the revolution have been truly realized, and there are no regrets.
Of course, these are big issues. Personally, they felt that General Chen died too early, before the national liberation.
Hu Jiao asked about their current life, medical care, and living environment.
Several old Red Army soldiers waved their hands in unison. Chen Dahong said, "We old and useless guys don't need the organization to worry about us. As long as we can still walk and move, we can't sit idle. We do farm work and listen to the national radio every day. That's enough. As for our children and grandchildren, they have their own lives and don't need special care from the organization."
Through chatting with the old revolutionaries, Hu Jiao learned that since Mr. Xu presided over the reform and opening up, their retirement wages have continued to increase.
They didn't use much of the money. They went to the village once a year to get it, and either used it to repair the Red Army tombs, buy books and desks to send to school, or help the poor families in the village.
As for the medical expenses that were fully reimbursed, the old revolutionaries basically never got sick. Even if they had some minor illnesses, they would just get some herbal medicine themselves.
Hu Jiao looked at them and found that they were all dressed like old farmers, except for the tough military style in their standing, sitting and talking movements.
Who would believe that they were old Red Army soldiers and veteran revolutionaries?
Hu Jiao couldn't help but think of those retired cadres in the city. If there was a slight discrepancy in their treatment or their medical reimbursement was slow, their children or themselves would rush to the relevant departments and point at their leaders and curse them.
Some children of those who were key leading cadres before retirement show off their qualifications, put on airs, and take advantage of their seniority. Some of them are even more ugly, have low character, and behave strangely.
Compared with these simple, kind-hearted old revolutionaries who dedicated their lives to the people, the Party and the country, there is a world of difference.
Listening to what they say, they are still afraid of causing trouble to the organization. They hope that no one will care and no one will ask about them, and just let them do whatever they want and forget about them in this remote mountain village.
Based on what he had learned over the past two days, Hu Jiao took the initiative to tell them about the current situation in Tieshu Township, the difficulties and problems it faces, and ways and means to solve them.
Unfortunately, including Chen Dahong, all people boycott anything involving tree felling.
Chen Dahong said, "As long as there is food, we are unwilling to cut down trees. This is a rule passed down from generation to generation and cannot be changed. As long as the country gives us Iron Tree people a bite of food, we will protect these mountains and forests."
Hu Jiao remained silent. He understood that the current problem was not created by a certain person or group. It was a conflict of concepts, an irreconcilable contradiction between tradition and development.
Therefore, the starting point is still how to change it and how to convince the iron tree people to protect the trees.
As for a series of issues such as access to roads and water, they are all within the scope of this concept. As long as we convince them, all development problems will be solved.
But to convince people, this task is not something that can be easily solved in one or two years, or even one or two generations.
For two whole months, Deputy Township Chiefs Chen Fulai and Chen Shoulai took turns accompanying Hu Jiao to visit the 17 natural villages in Tieshu Township.
As you walk, you can see the main crops, the structure, types, distribution of the forests, etc.
Sometimes he would take out the drawings of his predecessors and look at the highway design sketches, how to open up arable land, how to develop planting and breeding, how to build water conservancy projects and roads, and how to build power lines.
But pie in the sky is just pie in the sky.
No matter what kind of job you do, it involves felling trees.
Chen Fulai smiled bitterly, "Iron Tree is famous because of the old revolutionaries, and because of their existence, the development of our generation has become difficult. To be honest, sometimes I wish these old revolutionaries had passed away earlier..."
Hu Jiao looked at him strangely. What he said was not only insincere but also outrageous.
"Fulai, actually we can change our thinking. The old Red Army soldiers have become the spiritual leaders of the Tieshu people. Let me ask you, if someone dares to do something that harms the old Red Army soldiers, what do you think the Tieshu people will do?" Hu Jiao's expression was quite heavy.
Chen Fulai was stunned and said firmly, "Rebellion."
Hu Jiao chuckled, "That's it. I mean the road from Tieshu to the county town is done."
Chen Fulai couldn't guess what Hu Jiao was up to.
"Fulai, think about it. If we find the County Transportation Bureau... Oh, that won't work. The design of the County Transportation Bureau is not convincing enough. I will use my connections in the province to find a professional road and bridge designer. Let's build a new highway two kilometers out of the village, dig a tunnel at Hongjun Mountain, and connect it to the county road. How do you think?"
Chen Fulai's thoughts followed Hu Jiao's words and ran a circle slowly. This design is good!
"But what about investment? How much money would it cost?"
Hu Jiao looked at Chen Fulai with a smile and asked, "Well, according to reports, the Nanzhao Provincial Party Committee and the Provincial Government have designated Tieshu Township as a red revolutionary education base, decided to renovate General Chen's former residence, and allocated special funds to build roads..."
Chen Fulai said with a sigh, "If this is true... Secretary, is it true?"
Hu Jiao smiled bitterly and shook his head. "But some people say that according to the design, the tunnel of this highway passes through Red Army Mountain and passes under the Red Army's tomb, which is very likely to destroy the feng shui... Originally, it was because of the good feng shui of Red Army Mountain and the bayonet peak that a general was born. If the feng shui is damaged..."
Chen Fulai had already understood and looked at Hu Jiao in astonishment. Was this an idea bad or harmful?
Using the influence of the old revolutionaries, they forced the Tieshu people to actively refuse to build a new highway. If they had to build it, they would expand the original road and resolutely stop the tunnel.
In this way, it seems that the goal of building a road with iron trees has been achieved?
Chen Fulai looked at Hu Jiao. Although he was young, he was quite smart and worthy of being a man with a lot of education.
He had to smile bitterly, then looked at Hu Jiao with a complicated expression, "Secretary, ah...what do you want me to say? As a real Tieshu person, I should hate you for this kind of thing. But as a Tieshu cadre, I have to say, I give in!"
Hu Jiao shook his head, not a trace of pride on his face, his brows still furrowed. This was the expression Hu Jiao often had on his face since he came to the village.
Reading a text report is completely different from experiencing it personally.
He has lost five kilograms in the past two months.
He was tall to begin with, and had just experienced a long period of confinement last year, so he was put in the iron tree not long after recuperating.
Now his face is covered with stubble, his complexion is blue, and his eyes are sunken.
For two months, he didn't leave Tieshu. Even the newly arrived off-road vehicle didn't arouse his interest. He was frowning all day long.
Only when I return to the countryside and occasionally call Li Juan and put work aside temporarily can I relax for a moment.
During these two months, Li Juan was the first to collapse. During one visit, she felt carsick all the way and vomited all the time. When she arrived at Tieshu, she couldn't eat or sleep, so she had no choice but to go to the clinic and get an IV for two days.
I had to extend my vacation and stayed for another week.
For the past two months, Chen Fulai and Bai Shuyong have attended all county meetings, and they are both very happy about it.
They got on the new car and drove into the city. One represented the township party committee, and the other represented the township government.
None of the county leaders came down, so Hu Jiao could only report to the secretary and the county magistrate by phone from time to time, otherwise he was afraid that many people would have forgotten about him.
Wu Hao was officially elected as the county magistrate at the county people's congress three days ago. This was a meeting that Hu Jiao had to attend after taking office.
Even at the previous party congress, Hu Jiao was in the most remote Chashu Village and ultimately missed the meeting.
Thinking of those villagers who were hungry and naked but still treated them warmly, Hu Jiao couldn't help feeling sad.
When he took out the meal money, several villagers were even scared and cried. Several village cadres even slammed the table and quarreled with him, saying that he looked down on them and despised them.
You are a guest from afar, so what's the point of having a meal? You are still talking about money, isn't it hurtful?
Hu Jiao slammed the table heavily and looked at Chen Fulai firmly again, "There will be a meeting this afternoon. Xilai is in the county, right? No need to notify him. It will be just the few of us, you, Shoulai, the village chief, Lao Bai and Lao Gao."
The look Chen Fulai gave Hu Jiao was warm and kind. Through his interactions with Hu Jiao in the village, he understood that Hu Jiao was a person who really wanted to work for the people. He was not here to gain qualifications, nor was he a cadre who only worked for free and had no ability.
"Secretary, can I take the lead on this matter?"
Hu Jiao didn't look at him. He looked up at the sky and sighed deeply, "I have no choice. Fulai, the key person, Chen Xiaohou. You have to be careful. If something goes wrong, someone will die."
Chen Fulai nodded. He was not usually a person who liked to show off. Although he was now the executive deputy township head and actually in charge of the work of the township government, based on his previous personality, he would never stand up and take on such a heavy responsibility.
Sometimes, the three heroes of the Chen family would get together and discuss Hu Jiao in private.
After all, Chen Shoulai's words are the most representative, "This person is contagious."
What this means is that Hu Jiao can motivate and move others through his own words and deeds, and play a true exemplary role.
Come to think of it, he was a young city guy from a cadre family, but in the past two months he had traveled all over Tieshu Village and visited hundreds of households.
He would rest wherever he went and eat whatever he came across. He met extremely poor families several times, and after being scolded and scaring others for giving them money in person, he would quietly put the money on the table before leaving.
Through these practical actions, other people in the village were secretly moved. Most of the cadres here were born and raised in Tieshu. Even if they were not native people, they have now settled down.
Therefore, Hu Jiao has unintentionally and invisiblely gained their recognition and love.
Chen Fulai took the initiative to take the lead. It was not so much because of his principles as a party member, but rather because he was moved by Hu Jiao and did not want this already skinny and weak young man to take on such an important responsibility.
The afternoon meeting went smoothly. In the meeting room, the six people spoke very quietly, whispering to each other, and kept the doors and windows closed.
The meeting decided that Chen Fulai would be the commander of the Tongtie Highway and Chen Shoulai would be the deputy commander. Hu Jiao would be responsible for going to the provincial government to find experts to design two plans, while Bai Shuyong would go to the county government to seek financial support. If the county government could not come up with the money, Hu Jiao would then seek help from the provincial transportation department and the municipal finance department.
Since they really couldn't get the money, they invested the two million brought by Hu Jiao into Tong Railway in advance.
If you want to get rich, build roads first.
The meeting initially reached three decisions: First, spread the word about the Red Revolutionary Education Base throughout the township, and launch a tunnel plan. If the construction fails, come up with a second construction plan, that is, widen and flatten the road surface on the original roadbed;
Second, Chen Fulai should first try to convince Guiying, the Party Secretary of Guatian Village, to join the headquarters, because the two villages most affected by the highway are Tieshu and Guatian. Then Guiying should convince Chen Hou;
3. Contingency plans for mass incidents. Before construction begins, we must first sign an agreement with all the villagers along the road who own the mountain and forest land and make compensation. Once a mass incident is triggered, construction will be stopped immediately until the incident is settled and completely dealt with before restarting.
This meeting requires everyone to keep the secret, and whoever leaks the information will be held accountable.
The relevant road construction reports and specific survey instructions along the highway are almost ready-made. In the past, every time a new leadership was replaced in the township, this issue had to be dealt with. Now, the plans accumulated by the previous leaders are almost perfect.
Just change the date.
Hu Jiao decided to officially go to the provincial capital on March 14, 1995.
